Can filler

ABSTRACT

Can-filling apparatus in which a series of cans and associated aligned measuring boxes forming can extensions are moved in an arcuate path through a packing station after the cans and boxes have been loosely filled with particulate material. A pair of plungers are moved in a combined arcuate and orbital path to force the material simultaneously from a pair of boxes into an associated pair of cans.

United States Patent Inventor William A. Deming, Sr. [56] References Cited 343 S. Madison Apt. 18, Pasadena, Calif. UNITED STATES PATENTS 91106 2 644 629 7/1953 Yelle 141/146 A 1. No. 777 961 Fi l d on. 22, 1968 FOREIGN PATENTS Patented Jan. 5, 1971 354,553 7/1905 Franee 100/237 Continuation-impart of application Ser. No. 1,071,476 3/1954 France 141/242 537,449, Mar. 25, 1966, now-abandoned. 911,232 5/1954 Germany 141/80 Primary ExaminerHouston S. Bell, J r. CAN FILLER Attorney-Strauch, Nolan, Neale, Nies & Kurz Claims, 16 Drawing Figs.

U.S.Cl 141/71, ABSTRACT: Can-filling apparatus in which a series of cans 141/146,141/237,141/242, 100/223, 100/237, and associated aligned measuring boxes forming can exten- 222/370 sions are moved in an arcuate path through a packing station Int. Cl. B651) l/20 after the cans and boxes have been loosely filled with particu- Field of Search 141/ 12, 71, late material. A pair of plungers are moved in a combined ar- 73,80, 81, 146, 237,242; 53/ 124(d); 100/223, cuate and orbital path to force the material simultaneously 5 237; 222/370 from a pair of boxes into an associated pair of cans.

2 I )02 I62 :44 ('1 4 we 12a F1 I '1 :52 4 168 1 4 I r l I36 I u i 24 I r- 106 I02 v I22 3 r us" 84 m i f, U15 84 l l6 "a" time Q, J 4 w 4E5 1 I I 86 I I I I 51' I 9sL:. I 1,- 15 ne un 1 1e I 20 1 l 24 I J l 1 e2 1!} t A /l 24 a: z4 ea 5e 59 PATENTED JAN 51911 Y'SHEET 1 OF 9 INVENTOR WiHiOm A Demm 5R PATENTEUJAN sum 3.552.454

SHEET u 0F 9- I INVENT OR W/Hmm A Demmq 3R- PATENTEDJAN S19?! I 3,552,45

SHEET 6 OF 9 INVENTOR Mlliom A Deming 5R PATENTEU AM 5 l9?! 3552.454

SI'EET 7 BF 9 FIG. 73

INVENTOR.

WILLIAM A. DEM/N6, 5R.

diwmm M ATTORNEYS PATENTED JAN SIS?! INVEZVTOR ATTORNEYS Q FILLER; j I v a FIG; 8 is-a fragmentary sectional view of the lower end ofa modified plunger providing a larger possible plunger stroke CROSS-REFERENCEFFO, RELATED APPLICATION I h required; This a' a ":Qnfimimominpafi of mending FlG. 9 is a fragmentary sectional elevation view and illus- ."applicatlion Sel-LNQJ537A49 d '5 trating a second preferred, embodiment of a cam-actuated v. doned; v :1 t j vpressure-pa :king mechanism and taken generally along line 1 t 9-.9of'FlG. l0, butwiththecam followerpositioned atthe top 1 BACKGRQUlflD ()F THE'INYENTIQN a v I of thecarn and the plungers in their uppermost position; v Y .i' r I 3 L1 FIGuIOisafragmentary plan view ofthe mechanism shown The -presentinventionrelates to improvements n mach nesv 1Q FIG 9 d t th I T d h and mgchanisms forautomaticgvommemcmeasurin ,rfiuin I v in an 1 us ra mg etc a iveposr ion an arcuate pat n pam s m x fig j pa gma yg 59 M,- zgglgvzrrnaerli sitter? packing plungers with respect to the can suchwvggqablgsfwiigmcglshfisyl b--! l ?l ml Flcvl llis afragmentary sectional view taken along line e fir g i -Wi l z tfi iffq iii 'g 9* 7 1 1-11 of FIG. 10 and illustrating the cam assembly for conto i f "F l: a I trolling reciprocating movement of the packing plungers;

Y: Y FIG. 12 is afragmentary sectional view taken along line *l Z-lgof FIG.' 9 illustrating the drive connection between the turret and'plunger carrying carriage whereby the plungers and carriagearedirefctly driven by the rotating-turret along an aruatepath;,j t

E10, l3 'is ,a'fragrnentary sectional side elevational view ilnstratinga' third embodiment of a crank-operated pressurepacking mechanism; and j- Flq. 14 is a rear elevational view of the embodiment of HG. Sillustrttti'ng-the carriage-and crank assemblies for moving he'plungers for respectively reciprocating the packing plungem-laterally and vertically.

DETAILED DESCRlPTlON oF THE lNVENTlON Referring now'to the drawings-and particularly to FIG. 1, ltecan-filling'and pressure-packing machine of the present invention comprises a rotarycan conveyor mounted for rota- "'with-1t he can conveyor. 10 about axis 12 and providing a product'receiving table from which depend a plurality of equiangularly spaced variable capacity can extension conduits or "r nea'suring boxesi' l6,'one disposed above each can on the conveyor10,andan'orbitalcampackingmechanism generally 'indicatedat l8'for compacting the loose product in the meap tiqiwhhfi Y v l'tsuring chambers and cans into the cans; is rht ui:'lr ore e'xi 'IAS isapparent from FIG. 2, the rotary can conveyor 10 'siz es zaind ls mg and 'di comprises a can support plate and a peripherally notched y I y een-positioning plate or rack 22. The cans 24, which are typi- 1. filtei -bbjects bf tlte1 p 1"esent inventionA cally size 303,-are fed in the rotary conveyor 10 of the filling 1 nt by reference to-theappen'dedL machine along a linear conveyor 26 between guide rails 28 v etailed description proceeds "in '6 and 30 and aretransferred from the end of conveyor 26 to the i a l 'rotarylconveyor 10 by a star wheel 32 rotating about the axis Y 34 in accord with conventional practice. The cans 24 are held againstradial outward movement-by the guide rail 35. Filled g and packed cans are removed from the conveyor 10 by tongue 3'Zand the takeoff star wheel 36 (which is mounted for rota tion'ab out the axis 38)'and transferred between guide rails 40 and 4Z to'a discharge linear conveyor 44 for movement to a closing machine (not shown') a few feet away.

- .lnaccord with conventional practice, the cans 24 are fed s r v 10, the conveyorl0,andturret 14 rotating at a uniform speed ogan 'isa tragmemar sectionstviewtakensubstantiail i so. b mt x L r a 1-] along the'lilit 3A3Abfllg h g r As IS apparent, from FIGS. 2 and 3 the can spacer plate or I 510;.4 is a sectional developmento'f'one' embodiment'of the} rack 22 is supported upon the base plate 20 in spaced relation (gan-pag king m egha nism' qgh i g d ni f m -3 theretoby'aplurality of equiangularly spaced posts 46 to the v ghjgh ma a n St ion ke gnbgmnti ll top of which the plate 22 is secured by bolts 48. Beneath each Y in the arcuate surface indicatedflby' the jlinefH f FIG, 15,55 can location on the conveyor 10 as defined by the peripheral I 1 defined byTthe' path-gf motion of th'e'cen'terline'of theT cans a i i'iotches 49 in the can spacer plate 22 is a can lifter piston or they passthroughithepressurespacking station;' '1' "elevator SQwhichismounted for vertical reciprocation within FIG. Sis a rfragmentary'secti I: al 'ie' deems can p a clc'ing' the. vertical through bore 52 of a bearing sleeve 54 suitably mechanism'taken sii bstantijallyalohg t l'lQsWs of FIG .fsecuredby its flange 56 to the underside of the plate 20. The F1056 is a ffragmenta'ry sectiona taken substantially piston 'is resiliently supported within-the bore 52 by a yoke along line't5-t6oft-11G;l g Y 1 I A Y "58', having astem 60 slidably received within the central bore Y I FIG, 6A is a fragmentaryflsectio .vie wtalt'eri substantially-r 6 2 of the piston 50;and abutting the bottom of a compression Y N I x 1-) I coil spring interposed in the bore 62 between the upper end .fkF lG 7-is agftagmentary. sectional view-takensubstantially of thestem 60.and the endiwall 66 of the bore 62., and by a "alon g'theline 7:;7 ot FlG I; x l cam follower roller 68 journaled between the spaced arms of tionabou t a vertical'axis, a rotaryturret l4 rotatable coaxially the yoke 58 upon a transverse shaft 70 and rolling upon the top surface 72 of a cam track 74. Cam track 74 is annular and coaxial with axis 12 as is apparent from FIG. 1.

The depressed position of the piston 50 is illustrated in FIG. 3A. This is the position of the piston 50 when cans are being transferred to the plate 20 of the conveyor by the star wheel 32 and whenthey are being removed from the conveyor 10 by the star wheel 36. This lower limit position is defined by the stop bracket 76 secured to the sleeve 54 by a screw 78 and is permitted by the lower location of the cam surface 72 which is substantially in the plane of the top surface of the base plate 80 of the machine as the cans pass the star wheels 32 and 36.

After a can 24 has been deposited on the rotating conveyor 10 by the star wheel 32, as the conveyor 10 continues to rotate in a clockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 2, the cam surface 72 gradually rises from the plane of the top surface of the base plate 80 to a position as illustrated in FIG. 3. In this position, the can 24 has been lifted into abutting effectively sealed engagement with the bottom surface of the lower plate 82 of the turret 14.

The turret 14 comprises an upper plate or table 84, the lower plate 82, and an intermediate plate 86 which is secured to plate 82 by rivets 88 but maintained in spaced relation therefrom by spacer plates 90 and 92. The intermediate plate 86 has secured to its upper surface in equiangularly spaced relation about axis 12 above each can station, as defined by the plate 22, a tube 94 into the upper end of which telescopically fits the lower end ofa tube 96 secured to the underside of the plate 84. The tubes 94 and 96 interfit in telescopic relation and define a variable capacity can extension conduit through which particulate food passes from the top surface of the plate or table 84 into the can 24 during the filling operation.

By vertical adjustment of the plate 84 relative to the plate 82, the size of this chamber, which is commonly known as a measuring box, can be varied in accord with the requirements of the particular particulate material being canned.

When the piston 50 is in its elevated position as illustrated in FIG. 3, the can 24 together with the tubes 94 and 96 define a continuous chamber for the reception of particulate material, the plates 82 and 86 being apertured at 98 and 100 coaxially with the tubes 94 and 96.

In operation of the can conveyor 10 and turret 14, the particulate material to be canned is fed by a conveyor (not shown) from the preparation room or area to and deposited through a chute (not shown) or by free fall upon the top surface of the hopper plate 84 from which it drops into the cans 24 through the conduits defined by the tubes 94 and 96. The volume of flow of the product per minute should be a shade greater than the total volume of product being canned per minute. The particulate material in each measuring box 16 is manually leveled off even with the top surface of plate 84 as each can 24 and measuring box 16 approaches the pressurepacking mechanism 18 so that, at the time it passes to the mechanism 18, the interior of the can 24 and the can extension conduit or measuring box 16 defined by the tubes 94 and 96 is completely but loosely filled. The size of measuring boxes 16 is adjusted so that the combined volume of the can 24 and the measuring box 16 gives the total volume necessary to contain the loose product to be measured and in turn canned and be of proper drained weight.

The pressure-packing mechanism 18 is effective to force the particulate material from the chamber defined by the tubes 94 and 96 into the aligned can 24 and to compress the particulate material in the can 24 to a level slightly (about one-half inch) below the top thereof to provide a head space between the particulate material and the can lid when it is applied in accord with the conventional canning and sterilizing practice.

A fixed restraining plate 99 (the location of which is indicated in FlG. 2 by phantom lines) is mounted by posts 101 (FlG. 3) in base plate 80 and passes between the portions of plates 82 and 86 which are in alignment with it to close the openings 98 and 100 therethrough and prevent food loss while cans 24 are being transferred on and off the conveyor 10 by star wheels 32 and 36 (FIG. 2).

One embodiment of the pressure-packing mechanism 18 of the present invention is best illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 4. As there illustrated the mechanism 18 comprises a pair of plungers 102 and 104 which are moved vertically through orbital paths indicated by the lines and 112 while they are guided laterally for movement by cam tracks 106 and 108 in an arcuate path above the circular path of movement of the measuring boxes 16 of the turret 14.

As is most clearly shown in FlG. 4, the plungers 102 each consist of a vertical shaft 114 to the lower end of which is fixed transversely a disc 116. The disc 116 is circular and but slightly smaller in diameter than the internal diameter of the tube 96 so that the disc 116 can pass through the tubes 96 and 94 into the top of the can 24 to thereby eject the particulate material from the measuring box 14 into the can 24.

The shafts 114 are axially slidably received through cam to!- lower rollers 118 and 120 coacting respectively with the arcuate cam tracks 106 and 108. The cam tracks 106 and 108 each comprise a pair of channel-shaped members 122 and 124 (see also FIGS. 6 and 6A) so that the cam follower rollers 120 and 118 are fullyconfined against vertical motion while free to roll in arcuate paths parallel to the top surface of the plate 84 and coaxial with the axis 12 of rotation of the turret 14 and the can conveyor 10. The centerlines of cam tracks 106 and 108 lie in the cylindrical path of movement of the centerlines of cans 24 and measuring boxes 16 so that plungers 102 and 104 are maintained in alignment with the path of can motion.

The shafts 114 of the plungers 102 and 104 are interconnected by a pair of arms 126 and 128 which are fixed by pins 130 to the shaft 114 of the plunger 104 and which are each pivotally connected to but axially restrained relative to the shaft 114 of the plunger 102 by a pivot connection formed by collars 132 and 134 surrounding and fixed by pins 136 and 138 respectively to that shaft 114. The collars 132 and 134 are received between the spaced lower and upper yoke arms 139 and 140 of the arms 126 and 128 respectively. The yoke arms 139 and 140 are apertured so that the shaft 114 passes rotatably therethrough and embrace the collars 132 and 134 to thus provide a pivotal connection between the arms 126 and 128 and the shaft 114 of the plunger 102.

The arms 126 and 128 and the shafts 114 of the plungers 102 and 104 thus form a rectangular linkage in which the arms 126 and 128 are fixed relative to each other through their rigid connections to the shaft 114 of the plunger 104 but the shaft 114 of the plunger 102 is free to rotate relative to the arms 126 and 128 and the plunger 104.but which is axially fixed relative thereto.

This rectangular frame or linkage will hereinafter be referred to as the plunger assembly 142.

The plunger assembly 142 is free to move up and down with respect to the cam tracks 106 and 108 through the sliding connection of the shafts 114 with the cam rollers 118 and 120 and is guided for movement by the cam tracks 106 and 108 in an arcuate path about the center 12 FIGS. 1 and 2).

The vertical motion of the plunger assembly 142 is orbital, being controlled and effected by the plunger assembly drive mechanism 144 best illustrated in FIGS. 4, 5, and 7.

Referring to FlG. 7, the plunger assembly drive mechanism 144 receives its power input through a shaft 146. Shaft 146 is journaled about a substantially vertical axis by brackets 148, 150 and 152 fixed to and projecting laterally from a vertically extending frame member 154 which is rigidly secured to the machine base plate 80 (see FIG. 1). Shaft 146 is vertically supported by spaced antifriction thrust bearings 146 and 158 mounted on the brackets 148 and 150 respectively. Shaft 146 is drive connected to a pair of discs or crank arms 160 and 162. The connection to disc 160 is through meshing bevel gears 164 and 166 and shaft 168 which is journaled on plate 154 by bearing 170. The connection to disc 162 is through meshing bevel gears 172 and 174 and through shaft 176 which isjournaled in bearing 178 fixed to the plate 154.

The shaft 146 is drive connected to the same mechanism which imparts rotation to the can conveyor 10 and the turret 14 (FIG. 1) so that the plunger assembly 142 of the pressu repacking mechanism 18 will operate through its laterally arcuate vertical orbital path in synchronism with the rotation of the can conveyor 10 and the turret 14. As a specific example, with a plunger assembly 142 having two plungers 102 and 104, optimum efficiency is obtained if each of the plungers 102 and 104 enter into alternate ones of the even-numbered groups of measuring boxes 16. ln'the illustrated construction, there are 12 measuring boxes 16 and the drive to shaft 146 of the plunger assembly drive mechanism 144 is such that the plunger assembly 142 has six orbital cycles for each revolution of the turret 14 and can conveyor 10.

The connections between the discs 160 and 162 and the plunger assembly 142 are identical in form and are provided through the pins 136 and 138 (FIG. 4). The details of these mechanisms are shown in FIG. 5 for the connection formed bythe pin 136. As is there shown, the pin 136 extends through aligned bores 180 and 182 in the shaft 114 and the collar 132 and is axially and rotatively fixed therein by any suitable means, not shown. Since the shaft 114 and collar 132 are pivotally connected to the arm 126, the pin 136 likewise has limited pivotal motion (about 7 in. each direction) with respect to the arm 126. At its other end the pin 136 is. mounted for axial sliding movement through the bore of a bearir'igl84 fixed to the disc 160 and an aligned aperture 186 in the disc 160. A nut 188 is provided on the threaded end 190 of the pin 136 to prevent it from being disengaged from the bearing 184. The bearing 184 maintains the axis of the pin 136 parallel to the axis of the shaft 168 and normal to the plane of rotation of the disc 16 in all positions of the disc 160 as it rotates about the axis of the shaft 168. During rotation of the disc 160, the pin 136 will slide axially of bearing 184 to accommodate the varying. spacings of the shaft 114 from the disc 160 as the plunger assembly 142 moves back and forth along the cam tracks 106 and 108. The lateral limit of travel of the pin 136 is indicated by the phantom line representation of the pin 136 designated in FIG. as 136 and the lateral limit of motion of the cam roller 118 associated with the plunger 104 is indicated in phantom lines at 118' in FIGS. 4 and 5.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 4, as the discs 160 and 162 rotate in .a counterclockwise direction as viewed in those FIGS. about the axes of shafts168 and 176, the pins 136 and 138 will move in circular paths about the axes of shafts 168 and 176 respectively, these circular paths being indicated in FIG. 4 by the circular phantom lines designated 136" and 138".

Rotation of the discs160 and .162-by 90 from their full-line position illustrated in. FIG. 4 will move the arms 126 and 128 and the plunger plates 116 to the positions indicated in phantom lines at 126", 128' and 116 respectively. Continued rotation of the discs 160 and 162 through an additional 90 in a counterclockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 4 will bring the arms 126 and 128 to the positions indicated at 126" and 128", the disc 116 on the plunger 102 to the position originally occupied by the disc 116 on the plunger 104 and the disc 116 on plunger 104 to the position indicated at 116". Continued rotation of the discs 1 60 and 162 will restore the plungers 102 and 104 to their initial positions.

As is apparent from FIG. 1, as this orbital motion is imparted to the plunger assembly 142, it is maintained by the cam tracks 106 and 108 in an arcuate path about the center 12 above the path of movement of the measuring boxes 16 of the turret 14.

Referring again to FIG. 4, as the plunger bottom discs 116 begin their downward travel from the full-line positions illustrated in FIG. 4 along the circular paths 110 and 112 to their bottommost positions indicated at 116', the discs 116 enter and pass through the aligned measuring boxes 16 into the tops of the cans 24 at the positions indicated at 116'. At this point, the plungers 116 have forced the food that was in the measuring box 16 into the can 24 to a level slightly below (about onehalf inch) the top edge of the cans 24 to thereby provide the required head space for sealing the cans and sterilizing the product.

As the can conveyor 10 and turret 14 continue to rotate in a clockwise direction as viewed in FIG. 1 about the axis 12 thereby moving the cans 24 and measuring boxes 16 to the right as viewed in FIG. 4 and as the plungers 102 and 104 continue their orbital paths in synchronism with the movement of the conveyor 10 and turret 14, the plungers 116 are retracted through the measuring boxes 16 and thereafter are restored through the top half cycle moving their discs 116 along the paths and 112 respectively to their initial positions.

As is apparent from FIG. 4, when the can 24 and measuring box 16 through which the plunger 102 operates reaches a position in alignment with the plunger disc position indicated at 116", the next succeeding can 24 and measuring box 16 will be in alignment with the full-line position of the plunger 104 and the following can 24 and measuring box 16 will be in alignment with the full-line position of the plunger 102. There is thus, through the use of two plungers 102 and 104 no lost motion or time. The packing mechanism 18 and the turret 14 and can conveyor 10 can rotate continuously at uniform speeds, each can being packed by one or the other of the plungers 102 and 104.

For some applications I have found that more effective results are achieved by lengthening the cam tracks 106 and 108 and expanding the plunger assembly 142 to include four plungers which all move in orbital paths together, the several plungers being pivotally interconnected in the same manner as illustrated for the interconnection of plungers 102 and 104. The addition of two more plungers does not increase the packing speed of the mechanism but results in a prepacking breakup of the bridging of the product in each can 24 being subjected to the action of two plungers. For certain products this provides a more effective pack by speeding up the fall of the product by an advance breakup of any possible bridging of the product in the measuring box 16 or container 24.

As is apparent from FIGS. 4 and 5, merely by varying the spacing of the axis of pins 136 and 138 from the axis of shafts 168 and 176 respectively and by similarly varying the spacing between the axes of the shafts 114 of plungers 102 and 104, the packing mechanism can be used with turrets and can conveyors having different center-to-center spacings of the measuring boxes and cans. This feature is very important from the point of view of both the manufacturer and the user. The manufacturer can make and sell a basic packing mechanism which will fit any existing filling table merely through the use of different radial locations of the bearing 184 and aperture 186. The user can use the same basic packing mechanism with different turrets and can conveyors on his filling machines merely by making the same changes as the manufacturer.

Varying the radii of the circular paths 136" and 138" of pins 136 and 138 will, of course, likewise vary the radii of the circular paths 110 and 112 of the plunger discs 116. If the required radii of circles 136" and 138" does not give the proper vertical travel of the discs 116 through the measuring boxes 16 into the cans 24, this vertical travel can be varied by use of the modified structure illustrated in FIG. 8.

In the modification of FIG. 8, the plunger shaft 114a is hollow providinga chamber 200 closed at its upper end by a fixed plug 202 and at its lower end by a fixed annular plug 204 through which is slidably received a piston rod 206. The disc 116a is fixed to the bottom of the projecting end of piston rod 206. A piston 208 is slidably received in the chamber 200 and fixed to the upper end of rod 206. The assembly of piston 208, rod 206 and disc 116a is resiliently biased upwardly by a compression spring 210 interposed in chamber 200 about rod 206 between piston 208 and plug 204. Air is introduced into chamber 200 between piston 208 and plug 202 through port 212 to force the piston 208 downwardly in position to the biasing force of spring 210. This moves the disc 116a from its fullline'to its dashed-line position indicated at 116a, thereby effectively increasing the working stroke of the plungers of the plunger assembly. i

The timing of the input of air to the chamber 200 through port 212 and the exhaust of air therefrom through port 212 is controlled by any suitable timing valve synchronized with the orbital motion of the plunger assembly so that the plunger disc 116a is pneumatically forced downwardly after it is aligned with a can and so that it is retracted by spring 210 to its elevated position before the can passes from alignment therewith at the end of the pressure-packing stroke of the plunger assembly.

A preferred embodiment of the pressure-packing mechanism 18a of the invention is illustrated in FIGS. 9-12 and will now be described.

Referring particularly to FIGS. 9 and 10, mechanism 180 comprises a pair of plungers 220 and 222 which are moved through orbital paths identical to paths 110 and 112 (FIG. 1) as they are guided laterally for movement by vertically spaced arcuate rods 224 and 226 in an arcuate path above the circular path of movement of measuring boxes 16 of turret 14. Rods 224 and 226 are end connected to the rear of vertical support posts 228 and 230 by bolt assemblies 232 which include a faceplate 234 connected to the respective post by bolts 236, with the opposing faces of plates 234 and the posts having circular recesses which receive the ends of rods 234 and 236.

A plunger carriage assembly 240 supported on rods 224 and 226 for arcuate lateral movement therealong includes a pair of vertically spaced plunger guide arms 242 and 244 for each of plungers 220 and 222 and a back plate 246 weldedly connecting all the arms together to form a substantially rigid carriage assembly by which the relative radial position and arcuate spacing between plungers 220 and 222 is maintained substantially fixed.

A vertical guide rod 248 extends through the outer end of each pair of cooperating arms 242 and 244 and has end guide rollers 250 and 252 rotatively mounted thereon which respectively engage the outer side of rods 224 and 226 as carriage assembly 240 moves therealong. A pair of inner guide rollers 254 and 256 are rotatively connected to L-brackets 258 and 260, respectively, which are centrally mounted at the top and bottom of back plate 246 by bolts 262 in a manner such that rollers 254 and 256 engage the inner side of rods 224,226 and cooperate with outer guide rollers 250 and 252 in guiding carriage 240 and plungers 220 and 222 for arcuate movement.

A pair of return coil springs 263 and 264 are positioned around guide rods 224 and 226, respectively, between post 228 and respective arms 242 and 244 of plunger 220 and function to return the carriage assembly 240 back to the start position of FIG. 10 at the termination of a packing operation during which time the carriage and plungers will have been arcuately displaced in the direction of rotation of turret 14.

Each of the plungers 220 and 222 slidingly passes through aligned openings 265 and 266 provided in its respective support arms 2 I? and 244 and is aligned along the circular path of movement of b xes 16 for movement therethrough as shown by the broken line position in FIG. 9. Plungers 220 and 222 are connected for vertical reciprocating movement together by crossbar 266 having cylindrical end bosses 268 and 270 through which plungers 220 and 222 respectively pass, with through bolts 272; and 274 respectively fixing boss 268 to plunger 220 and boss 270 to plunger 222.

Plunger 220 is maintained in a normal central position by an upper coil-centering spring 276 positioned between upper arm 242 and the top of boss 268 and a similar lower coil-centering spring 278 positioned between lower arm 244 and the bottom of boss 268. Identical centering springs are provided for plunger 222.

Vertical reciprocation of the plunger is controlled by a cam 280 connected by screws 282 to an arcuate beam 284 which has its ends fixed to the front faces of posts 228 and 230 by screws 286. A rotatable cam follower 288 centrally connected to crossbar 266 follows the contour of cam 280 and as the carriage assembly 240 is driven clockwise by turret 14 as viewed in FIG. 10, follower 288 will roll along cam 280 as shown in FIG. 117 As illustrated in FIG. 9, when follower 288 travels along the surface of cam 280, plungers 220 and 222 will reciprocate between a full-line uppermost position when follower 288 is at the top of cam 280 and a broken line lowermost position when the follower is at the bottom of the cam, with the plunger in the broken line position having passed through a box 16 into a can 24.

When the cam roller 288 reaches the broken line position of FIG. 11, lower springs 278 will urge plungers 220 and 222 upwardly out of boxes 16 toward the normal center position and, as carriage 240 is urged laterally back to the start position of FIG. 10 by return springs 263 and 264, roller 288 will travel upwardly along the upper surface of cam 280 back to the fullline position of FIG. 11, thus causing the plungers to move upwardly and thereby complete their orbital motion back to their initial start position.

Carriage assembly 240 is driven arcuately along rods 224 and 226 directly by the rotating turret 14 through a series of equiangularly spaced pins 290 equal in number to one-half the number of boxes 16 and positioned adjacent the outer edge of turret 14.

Referring particularly to FIGS. 9 and 12, the mounting bolt 255 for inner guide roller 256 is elongated and has an L- shaped drive dog 292 rotatably mounted thereon. the dog 292 being formed by a pair of integrally formed arms 294 and 296 generally at right angles to each other. Arm 296 has a roller 300 bolted to the bottom thereof, with the roller 300 riding along a fixed arcuate guide track 302 supported by brackets 303, with track 302 extending an arcuate length approximately equal to the maximum possible distance of lateral travel of cam follower 288 along cam 280 as shown in FIG. 10.

Referring to FIG. 12, with a pin 290 engaging dog arm 294 and roller 300 riding on guide 302, rotation of turret 14 will cause lateral arcuate movement of carriage 240 along rods 224 and 226 while at the same time plungers 220 and 222 will be reciprocated by the cam action of cam 280 and follower 288 described above. When roller 300 reaches guide end 304 and passes therearound, dog 292 will pivot about bolt 255 and pin 290 will become disengaged from arm 294, thereby interrupting the drive connection between turret l4 and carriage assembly 240. As the pin is released from arm 294, springs 263 and 264, which have been compressed during the forward lateral movement of the carriage, will return the carriage back to the start position shown in FIG. 10. This operation will be repeated when the next pin 290 engages dog 292 and another pair of boxes 16 are aligned with plungers 220 and 222.

It is to be noted that the length of the stroke of plungers 220 and 222 and thus the tamping force may be varied simply by repositioning the cam 280 on beam 284 to vary the resulting cam action on follower 288 and the plungers to which it is connected.

A third embodiment according to which the pressurepacking mechanism 18b may be constructed is illustrated in FIGS. 13 and 14, and is very similar in operation to the embodiment shown in FIGS. 9-12, differing primarily in that the reciprocating movement of the tamping plungers is controlled by a crank assembly 310.

The carriage assembly 312 for moving plungers 314 and 316 laterally along an arcuate path comprises an integrally cast carriage member 318 having outer guide rollers 320 and inner guide rollers 322 mounting the member for movement on arcuate guide rails 324 and 326 which are end connected to posts 328 and 330 fixedly supported from the main machine base plate 332 by columns 334 and 336.

Each of plungers 314 and 316 is slidably received in aligned openings 338 and 340 in respective cooperating vertically spaced support arms 342 and 344 of carriage member 318.

Carriage assembly 312 is laterally driven by turret 14 in a manner identical to that illustrated in FIG. 12 and described with respect to the cam-actuated embodiment of FIGS. 9 and 10.

A pair of return coil springs 346 and 348 connected between post 330 and carriage member 318 are stretched as carriage assembly 312 and plungers 314 and 316 are moved laterally along rods 324 and 326 away from post 330 by turret l4 and, upon disengagement of pin 290 from dog arm 294 shown in FIG. 12, assembly 312 will return backto the initial start position adjacent post 330.

A crosshead member 350 has cylindrical lugs 352 and 354 which encircle respective plungers 314 and 316 and are fixed thereto by screws 318, with the crosshead'and plungers being reciprocated by crank assembly 310.

Crank assembly 310 comprises a suitably driven shaft 356 rotatably supported by a bearing sleeve unit 358 suspended from base plate 332, with a crank wheel 360 fixed on the end of shaft 356 for rotation therewith. A pinion assembly 362 including a clevis pin 364 having an elongated reduced end 366 which passes through sleeve 368 and crank .360 at a predetermined radial distance from the centerthereof, the pinion assembly being rotatably secured to crank 360 by retainer nut 370 threaded on the end of pin 366. The other end 372 of pin 364 is bifurcated and receives between its ends the lower end pivotally conwelded thereto, the stem 390 passing through opening 392 of crank am 374 and being secured thereto by bottom nut 394.

As carriage assembly 312 is moved laterally on rails 324 and 326 by turret 14 through the drive mechanism illustrated in FIG. 12, crank assembly 310 will be driven by mechanism not shown to reciprocate plungers 314 and 316 in a predetermined manner between a raised position and a lowermost tamping position shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, thereby moving the plungers in orbital paths similar to paths 110 and 112 of FIG. 1.

The length of the stroke of plungers 314 and 316 may be varied to vary the tamping force as required merely by varying the diameter of crank 360 or by changing the radial position of pinion assembly 362 along the crank.

The invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

1 claim:

1. In a can-filling machine, means providing a pressurepacking station, means for continuously moving a plurality of containers and aligned measuring boxes loosely filled with particulate material in uniformly spaced succession through said packing station, and a pressure-packing mechanism at said packing station for simultaneously packing into each successive pair of containers the particulate material loosely filled in each said successive pair of containers and the associated measuring boxes as they pass through said packing station.

2. The machine defined in claim 1 wherein the path of motion of the measuring boxes and containers through said packing station is arcuate.

3. The machine defined in claim 1 wherein said pressurepacking mechanism is cyclically operated in synchronism with the movement of said container moving means.

4. The machine defined in claim 3 wherein said pressurepacking mechanism comprises a pair of packing plungers and means for reciprocating said pair of plungers simultaneously through an adjacent pair of measuring boxes into an adjacent pair of containers as said adjacent pair of containers and measuring boxes move through said packing station while main taining said plungers substantially in alignment with said pair of measuring boxes and containers as they continuously move through said packing station and for restoring said pair of plungers to a position for reciprocation through the next succeeding pair of measuring boxes into the next succeeding pair 0' of containers.

5. The machine defined in claim 4 wherein the paths of motion of said containers and of said plungers are arcuate about a common axis.

6. The machine defined in claim 5 wherein the reciprocation of said plungers is effected at least primarily by imparting orbital motion thereto in a direction parallel to said common axis while said plungers are maintained in their said arcuate path.

7. The machine defined in claim 4 wherein each of said plungers comprises a main portion and a pressure plate mounted on the lower end of said main portion.

8. The machine defined in claimj whe rein each of said plungers includes means mounting the plunger pressure plate portion for movement relative to the plunger main portion and wherein said machine includes means for imparting orbital motion to the main portion of said plungers and for imparting rectilinear motion to thepressure plate portion of said plungers relative to the main portion of said plungers during a predetermined portion of the path of orbital motion of the main plunger whereby the total movement of the pressure plate portion of the plunger in a direction parallel to said axis may exceed the magnitude of movement of the main portion of said plunger parallel to said axis.

9. The machine defined in claim 4 wherein said pressurepacking mechanism comprises means for drive connecting said packing plungers to said container and box-moving means to move said plungers along with said adjacent pair of containers and boxes through said packing station and for subsequently interrupting said drive connection to restore said plungers to said position for reciprocation into said next succeeding pair of boxes and containers.

10. The machine defined in claim 9 wherein said plunger reciprocating means comprises a cam-actuating assembly. r

11. The machine defined in claim 9 wherein said plunger reciprocating means comprises a crank-actuating assembly.

12. in a can filler in which cans are continuously moved in an arcuate path and are filled by gravity transfer of particulate material through a synchronously and similarly moving can extension conduit aligned with the can to effectively increase the volume of the can during such gravity transfer, a mechanism for completing the particulate material transfer through said conduit and completing the packing of said can, said mechanism comprising a plunger, means guiding said plunger for movement back and forth along an arcuate path substantially coaxial with the axis about which the can and can conduits move, the axis of the plunger remaining substantially in alignment with axes of the can and conduits during at least a predetermined portion of the path of movement of said cans and conduits, means for imparting orbital motion to said plunger in substantial synchronism with the movement of a can and conduit while it is guided in said path to move said plunger into, through and out of an aligned one of said conduits during one-half of the cycle of orbital motion in one direction along said path and to restore said plunger along said path to its initial position during the other half-cycle of itsorbital motion.

13. The filler defined in claim 12 wherein said plunger-guiding means comprises a pair of cam tracks disposed in alignment with and in vertically spaced relation above the path of movement of the cans and conduits, a pair of cam follower rollers, one engaged with each of said cam tracks, and means mounting each of said cam follower rollers for rotation relative to said plunger while permitting relative axial movement therebetween.

14. The filler defined in claim 13 wherein the rotation axes of said cam follower rollers are coincident with the longitudinal axis of said plunger.

' 15. The filler defined in claim 12 wherein said orbital-mo- '1 tion-imparting means comprises a pair of parallel cranks lel to the crank rotation axes. 

1. In a can-filling machine, means providing a pressure-packing station, means for continuously moving a plurality of containers and aligned measuring boxes loosely filled with particulate material in uniformly spaced succession through said packing station, and a pressure-packing mechanism at said packing station for simultaneously packing into each successive pair of containers the particulate material loosely filled in each said successive pair of containers and the associated measuring boxes as they pass through said packing station.
 2. The machine defined in claim 1 wherein the path of motion of the measuring boxes and containers through said packing station is arcuate.
 3. The machine defined in claim 1 wherein said pressure-packing mechanism is cyclically operated in synchronism with the movement of said container moving means.
 4. The machine defined in claim 3 wherein said pressure-packing mechanism comprises a pair of packing plungers and means for reciprocating said pair of plungers simultaneously through an adjacent pair of measuring boxes into an adjacent pair of containers as said adjacent pair of containers and measuring boxes move through said packing station while maintaining said plungers substantially in alignment with said pair of measuring boxes and containers as they continuously move through said packing station and for restoring said pair of plungers to a position for reciprocation through the next succeeding pair of measuring boxes into the next succeeding pair of containers.
 5. The machine defined in claim 4 wherein the paths of motion of said containers and of said plungers are arcuate about a common axis.
 6. The machine defined in claim 5 wherein the reciprocation of said plungers is effected at least primarily by imparting orbital motion thereto in a direction parallel to said common axis while said plungers are maintained in their said arcuate path.
 7. The machine defined in claim 4 wherein each of said plungers comprises a main portion and a pressure plate mounted on the lower end of said main portion.
 8. The machine defined in claim 7 wherein each of said plungers includes means mounting the plunger pressure plate portion for movement relative to the plunger main portion and wherein said machine includes means for imparting orbital motion to the main portion of said plungers and for imparting rectilinear motion to the pressure plate portion of said plungers relative to the main portion of said plungers during a predetermined portion of the path of orbital motion of the main plunger whereby the total movement of the pressure plate portion of the plunger in a direction parallel to said axis may exceed the magnitude of movement of the main portion of said plunger parallel to said axis.
 9. The machine defined in claim 4 wherein said pressure-packing mechanism comprises means for drive connecting said packing plungers to said container and box-moving means to move said plungers along with said adjacent pair of containers and boxes through said packing station and for subsequently interrupting said drive connection to restore said plungers to said position for reciprocation into said next succeeding pair of boxes and containers.
 10. The machine defined in claim 9 wherein said plunger-reciprocating means comprises a cam-actuating assembly.
 11. The machine defined in claim 9 wherein said plunger-reciprocating means comprises a crank-actuating assembly.
 12. In a can filler in which cans are continuously moved in an arcuate path and are filled by gravity transfer of particulate material through a synchronously and similarly moving can extension conduit aligned with the can to effectively increase the volume of the can during such gravity transfer, a mechanism for completing the particulate material transfer through said conduit and completing the packing of said can, said mechanism comprising a plunger, means guiding said plunger for movement back and forth along an arcuate path substantially coaxial with the axis about which the can and can conduits move, the axis of the plunger remaining substantially in alignment with axes of the can and conduits during at least a predetermined portion of the path of movement of said cans and conduits, means for imparting orbital motion to said plunger in substantial synchronism with the movement of a can and conduit while it is guided in said path to move said plunger into, through and out of an aligned one of said conduits during one-half of the cycle of orbital motion in one direction along said path and to restore said plunger along said path to its initial position during the other half-cycle of its orbital motion.
 13. The filler defined in claim 12 wherein said plunger-guiding means comprises a pair of cam tracks disposed in alignment with and in vertically spaced relation above the path of movement of the cans and conduits, a pair of cam follower rollers, one engaged with each of said cam tracks, and means mounting each of said cam follower rollers for rotation relative to said plunger while permitting relative axial movement therebetween.
 14. The filler defined in claim 13 wherein the rotation axes of said cam follower rollers are coincident with the longitudinal axis of said plunger.
 15. The filler defined in claim 12 wherein said orbital motion-imparting means comprises a pair of parallel cranks mounted for rotation about spaced parallel axes lying in a plane substantially perpendicular to the path of can and conduit motion and means pivotally connecting said plunger to each of said cranks about axes equally spaced from and parallel to the crank rotation axes. 